ELID precision grinding of large special Schmidt plate for fibre multi-object spectrograph for 8.2Â m Subaru telescope

To explore various scientific frontiers from nearby substellar objects to large scale structures of the high redshift universe, a Fibre Multi-Object Spectrograph (FMOS) is being developed as the second generation near-infrared measuring instrument for the prime focus of 8.2 m Subaru telescope in Hawaii, which employs a large special Schmidt plate element. The Schmidt plate consists of a large non-axisymmetric aspherical concave plate and a convex plate. This paper introduces its manufacturing process, focusing on its non-axisymmetric aspherical surface machining by utilizing synthetically ELID grinding and arc-enveloped grinding method. A new grinding system capable of fabricating large optical elements was developed with 10 nm resolution. In this ELID arc-enveloped grinding system, a Cast Iron Fibre Bonded (CIFB) diamond wheel was 3D controlled to scan the workpiece to generate required surface. Grinding characteristics such as attainable form accuracy, surface roughness were investigated. Furthermore, some measures to improve form accuracy were discussed and verified.